It’s easy to make fun of tourists, but it's a lot harder to criticize the tourism industry. Tourists drive at a crawl over the Pali, rubbernecking at whales, while 10 cars tail them. Tourists crowd beaches and trails, then tell you to get out of “their” sunset. Tourists poke you with their selfie sticks as they strike poses for Instagram while crusted in reef-toxic … [Read more...] about ‘An Overworked Brothel’ – Maui County Council discusses visitor impacts to our environment and infrastructure
Kai Nishiki
Access Denied: ‘Āina warriors fight for the shoreline
A New Wave of ‘Āina Warriors A few years ago, I was approached by the HK West Maui Community Fund to help document shoreline access points in West Maui. The website Westmauibeachaccess.org was created with the information gathered. It lists West Maui’s shoreline access points, maps, and photographs. The website also includes links to the cases, statutes, and ordinances that … [Read more...] about Access Denied: ‘Āina warriors fight for the shoreline
Maui County Council is on verge of making Kaanapali public beach access parking even worse
There's a lot of garbage on social media these days, but one of the best things I've seen lately is the Access Denied! Surf? Fish? Dive group on Facebook. Here, Westside residents and activists like Kai Nishiki and Randy Draper post photos, videos and information about their fights to stop big resorts from encroaching on public beaches with concession stands, endless lines of … [Read more...] about Maui County Council is on verge of making Kaanapali public beach access parking even worse
Maui officials assessing Kapalua Resort Association’s destruction of historic rock wall
It isn't often that you see big money hubris get stopped in its tracks, but that seems to be what happened in Kapalua a few days ago. That's when local activists Kai Nishiki and Tamara Paltin discovered that workers in the exclusive, luxurious Kapalua Resort were in the process of demolishing an 80-year-old rock wall. "When I saw that wall just haphazardly just thrown to the … [Read more...] about Maui officials assessing Kapalua Resort Association’s destruction of historic rock wall
Maui County Environmental Coordinator responds to recent MauiTime story on Olowalu seawall demonstrations
Editor's note: Maui County Environmental Coordinator Rob Parsons, a longtime contributor to MauiTime, felt that our recent cover story on anti-seawall activists in Olowalu left out others who helped stop the road project. Here are his thoughts: I was glad to see MauiTime featured the story on how activists helped the DOT rethink a project for a 900-foot rock revetment just … [Read more...] about Maui County Environmental Coordinator responds to recent MauiTime story on Olowalu seawall demonstrations